April 13, 2013
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The other day I was driving to a restaurant I’d been to once before. I felt confident I knew where it was located. I ended up circling the nearby streets for at least twenty minutes. “Was it one street up? Or one down?” If you drew my trip on a map it’d have looked like Pacman or some variant thereof, left-right-up-down. “Ahh…finally.” It turns out I had forgotten that it was actually more than a few streets down from the largest cross streets I’d memorized.
It’s a good thing I wasn’t in a rush, and had a pleasant lunch.
There are times in day-to-day living I’m sure I know my way only to find myself coming up again to an impasse -”Wait – wasn’t I just here?” – I don’t wish to go around in circles; I want to get to my destination.
I wish it were that easy.
Sometimes a detour is a nuisance, a mere pause. Or it can be frustrating. Even painful.
When the misunderstanding pops up that has led to hurt feelings a thousand times before, and I think, “When are we ever going to get past this?” When the situation tries my patience and sanity for the umpteenth time, and I wonder, “Can I give up?” ‘Round and around and around and around we go.
I try to explain to the people who don’t know why or how, only that they’ve hurt me, “Don’t you know when you do this, I will react in (this) way because it hurts me?” “Or, when you say this in such a manner, I can’t help but think you really mean (this) so I feel upset?” Now tell me now tell me now tell me now you know. I’m at the end of my rope, tied a knot, and hanging on. But it’s coming apart, fraying.
But just when I’ve no more to beg and plead, and just to give up, a friend saves me. Sometimes you’ve just got to take the time to go find someone and show them how to move their feet. Someone does that for me, and I keep moving. Because from the cross comes love. And I remember we love because He first loved us. And I am thankful for a friend that knows love, speaks love, and passes on love.
The pain? It, too, keeps going. You can only pass pain on, or nail it to a Cross. Pain keeps going until I nail it to a cross. There I find refuge. Then I know everything will be OK.
Because from the cross comes love.
It’s the only way to go in a circle, and not get lost.
’round and around.
